Conventional spark plugs for internal combustion engines are available in different designs. For example, a spark plug which has a tubular, metallic housing and a screw thread embossed thereon is described in German Patent Application No. DE 199 40 455 A1. To minimize corrosion, at least part of the metallic housing is provided with an electroplated coating as protection. Due to more recent engine developments, however, the physical volume available for a spark plug is decreasing. Modern engines have multiple valves, usually between four and five valves per cylinder. To obtain a better charge and thereby also improved performance, larger intake valve diameters, in particular, are also desirable. The higher power densities also require larger cooling ducts. In engines having direct fuel injection, an additional physical volume is needed for at least one injection valve. Therefore, increasingly less of the physical volume provided for each cylinder is available for a spark plug. However, since the spark plug is a wearing part and must therefore be replaced after a certain number of hours of use, the spark plug must be situated on the cylinder in such a way that it can be removed. The conventional spark plugs have a thread and a hexagonal engagement surface for this purpose on the outer housing of the spark plug, it usually being possible to apply a tool having a wrench size of 16 to the hexagonal engagement surface. Since the tool itself surrounds the outside of the hosing, and therefore has a standardized outer diameter, the physical volume for the spark plug must be designed as a function of the maximum outer diameter of the tool. A certain amount of space must therefore also be provided for a tool engagement.